Food allergies in dogs are relatively unusual. They make up a 10% of all allergies and a 20% of the causes of itching and scratching in dogs. Despite being rare, they can make your dog or cat feel bad if you don’t identify and eliminate from their diet the ingredient that causes the allergy.
This type of allergy affects both males and females, whether they are sterilized or not. They can occur after five months age at any stage.
It is important to make the distinction between food allergy and food intolerance. Food allergy shows the characteristic symptoms of skin and itching problems. The most common causes are caused by dairy products, chicken, lamb, fish, chicken eggs, corn, wheat and soybeans. On the other hand, food intolerances in dogs are very similar to that of people. They can cause diarrhea or vomiting, and not create a typical allergic response.
The irritation or itchy skin that is caused by an allergy in our dog, mainly affects face, hooves, ears, front legs, armpits and the area around the anus. Although they can also include chronic or recurrent ear infections, hair loss or baldness, excessive scratching, hot spots and skin infections that respond to the use of antibiotics, but reappear after stopping their administration.
If your dog suffers an episode of food allergy or intolerance to a particular food, visit your veterinarian. It is also advisable to introduce specialized food into your pet’s diet. In Nugape, we have the Grain Free line. It is a line of hypoallergenic foods made without cereals. It provides an ideal diet aimed to combat food allergies and / or intolerances to some nutrients.
